You won't get hosed over the 'Pocket Hose!'

2013-01-21T17:27:40Z2013-08-29T13:32:37Z

The Pocket Hose

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - After over a year of hosting the 'Try It Before You Buy It' segments, there's only been a hand full of 'as seen on TV' products that viewers have requested to see more than this week's product. After waiting for what seemed like months for the 'Pocket Hose' to finally be available in stores, I finally found it, and this week I get to 'Try It Before You Buy It!'

I have to admit, I really didn't think that the 'Pocket Hose' would live up to the claims made in its TV commercial, however, after testing the product I was surprised.

I purchased the 50 foot long version which, in its package, seems to be much, much smaller. After hooking the hose up to the water outlet and opening the valve, it immediately expanded to the full length of 50 feet! The commercial shows that the 'Pocket Hose' is "kink proof." However, as soon as it filled with water it did just that. Kinked in two or three different places. Once I straightened the hose out, it looked and worked like any other garden hose.

Next was the test to see if the 'Pocket Hose' shrunk back to it's compact, light size as soon as the water pressure was turned off and the remaining water was drained from the hose. Again, I was surprised to see that it performed as well as shown on television! Keep in mind, the commercial does use time lapse photography which makes the hose appear to immediately shrink back to its packaged size. It actually takes a little longer than that and you have to work the hose to make sure all the water does drain out before putting it away.

The name, 'Pocket Hose' was given to the product because the manufacturer says it'll fit in your pocket. Well, unless you have unusually large pockets, forget it! We even tried to test that claim with a photographer on staff who was wearing cargo pants. I was sure that his large, roomy pockets would allow him to easily store the 'Pocket Hose' once coiled up. Wrong! So don't expect it to be a hose you can just roll up and tuck away in your pants pocket with ease. A garden cart or small carry bag should work.

After the tests were complete, I have to say that other than the issues listed above, the 'Pocket Hose' does a decent job. It's light and easy to move around once devoid of any water and would be a great hose for anyone to has trouble dealing with everyday plastic or rubber hoses that are bulky and heavy to move around.

I found our test product at a Walgreens store for $20 plus tax, and I think it works fairly well!

UPDATE 8/29/13: In the past few weeks I've received a couple of emails about the Pocket Hose. Both were in regards to problems & failures of the product. One gentleman told me that he had an issue with the end of the hose "blowing out" when the water was turned on full blast. He said he was able to find replacement ends and that fixed his problem.

This morning I received an email from a viewer complaining of total failure of the Pocket Hose.

"After using it 10 to 15 times each one had a balloon like material pop right out the lime green material and popped like a fire cracker. Also one had 2 pin holes in the black hard plastic and not by any seems (seams)."

I would suggest to anyone that has problems with the product to immediately return it to the place of purchase and get a full refund. Make sure to keep your receipt!

I have been using the exact same Pocket Hose I tested on television for over a year now, and haven't had any problems. So the issue may be with water pressure or just getting a 'bad' product once in a while.